Uncategorized

Caution: some chargers can damage the Ricoh Theta

Apparently, some wall chargers can damage the Ricoh Theta.  Here are the symptoms and some suggested solutions.

Some users found that when they plug in their Theta to a wall charger, there will be a red light as if it’s charging, but after they remove the Theta from the charger, the Theta doesn’t turn on anymore, as though the Theta battery can’t hold the charge.  It appears that this problem is caused by some wall chargers.  Once this happens, it appears the Theta will need to be sent back to Ricoh for repair (which is usually less than the cost of a new Theta).

The safest way to avoid the problem is to charge the Theta by connecting it via USB to your PC.  Other users have recommended only wall chargers up to 1.5 amps or less, although I don’t know what is the maximum amperage allowed for the Theta.

Here is the link to the related discussion on Theta developers forum.

About the author

Mic Ty

7 Comments

Click here to post a comment

Leave a Reply to Mic Ty Cancel reply

This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.

  • The amp rating of the wall charger is irrelevant. That's what the charger is *capable* of, not what it "pushes". My guess is that some chargers are outputting voltage that is higher than 5V, and the Theta S is less tolerant of out of spec voltage than other devices.

      • I’ve heard various explanations and solutions. It is all suspicion. After trying various cables and chargers to get my Theta S to start charging, I finally got it to charge with a 2A iPad power supply and a brand name cable. And it’s not damaged. So there’s another data point,

        I’ve also had good experiences using a “Porta Pow USB Power Monitor with Smart Charge” in between the wall charger and the USB cable. Using the Porta Pow was the only way I could get the Theta to run off a USB battery pack.

  • I know this is an older comment, but most consumer electronic devices, cameras or otherwise, have a label on them that includes model, serial and other numbers placed by the manufacturer. In addition, they usually show Wattage and Voltage and sometimes current draw needed by the device to operate it, or charge it, properly. The Ricoh Theta Z1, for example, shows 4.5W (Watts) and 5V DC. To solve for current, know that W (Watts) = V (Voltage) x A (Amps/Current), or, 4.5 = 5 x “X”, or 4.5 / 5 = “X”, and, “X” equals .9A (Amps).